Wage theft takes more from American workers than burglaries and robberies.CREDIT: AP Photo/Paul SancyaIt’s been illegal for a company to pay an employee less than the minimum wage — today, at least $7.25 an hour, although in many states it’s higher — for nearly 80 years. So when Daniel started working at a restaurant in New York City almost a decade ago, he expected that’s what he’d make.He was … [Read more...]

A new law will keep past pay out of the hiring process in an effort to give women and people of color a clean slate.New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) with Reps. Representatives Carolyn Maloney (D) and Nita Lowey (D). CREDIT: AP Photo/Peter MorganIf you apply for a job in New York City after October, you might notice a change in the process: your potential employer won’t ask you what you made … [Read more...]

Oil and gas companies are speaking out against Trump’s domestic steel mandatesCREDIT: AP Photo/Susan Walsh, FileBig Oil gets huge subsidies, some $38 billion over 10 years, from American taxpayers to support job creation and domestic production. But don’t go asking the industry to buy domestic steel in return, because, hey, unnecessary government interference in their business would … [Read more...]

“This is a different world from three years ago” — renewables are no longer “alternative energy.”Bloomberg New Energy Finance chair Michael Liebreich giving his keynote talk at the April BNEF Summit in New York City. Credit: J. RommRenewables and efficiency have already won the battle for the future of electricity.At least, that was the message at the Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) Summit in … [Read more...]

The city has warned 8,000 residents that they could face foreclosure over refusing to pay for poisoned water.Flint resident Melissa Mays in 2016. CREDIT: AP Photo/Carlos OsorioMelissa Mays and her family have been through a lot. They’ve been living in their four bedroom house with a big backyard in Flint, Michigan since 2009; they were there in early 2014, when the city’s water source changed and … [Read more...]

It will cost vulnerable people their insurance without helping anyone actually find work.House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) speaking about the Republican health care bill on Wednesday. CREDIT: AP Photo/J. Scott ApplewhiteThe House is scheduled to vote on Trumpcare Thursday night, but it’s still up in the air whether Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) will have the votes to get it passed.So in an effort to … [Read more...]

Baltimore’s city council passed a $15 minimum wage.Darlene Handy of Baltimore at a rally in 2014. CREDIT: AP Photo/Jose Luis MaganaFFifteen dollars is nearly double the federal minimum wage, the lowest amount an American employer can pay his employees each hour. But as that wage floor has stagnated amid years of inaction in Congress, cities and states have pushed their own minimum … [Read more...]

The White House wants to cut programs that are critical to sparsely populated areas.Weeds grow around an old building and picket fence in Rocky Ford, Colo., on July 1, 2016. Otero County is a rural and increasingly impoverished part of southern Colorado. CREDIT: Brennan LinsleyPresident Donald Trump’s proposal for the federal budget, released on Thursday, targets a number of agencies and programs … [Read more...]

Here are the things Donald Trump says the government should stop doing forever.President Trump with House Speaker Paul Ryan. CREDIT: AP Photo/Evan VucciBy Alan Pyke and Bryce CovertIn his initial budget document released on Thursday, President Donald Trump called for huge reductions in government spending. Beyond simply handing some agencies and programs less money to work with, he wants to … [Read more...]

Trump promised to rebuild inner cities. But he wants to slash HUD’s budget, devastating New York’s poor.President Donald Trump. CREDIT: AP Photo/Mark HumphreyCarla Parsi has lived in New York City’s East River Houses public housing project for five years. From the moment she moved in, she didn’t want to stay.“When I moved in and saw what this place was like… I stopped unpacking and I kept telling … [Read more...]

The alternative minimum tax is the primary reason he paid a sizable share of his income in a leaked 2005 return.CREDIT: AP Photo/Evan VucciPresident Donald Trump has refused to release his tax returns. But late on Tuesday evening, reporter David Cay Johnston released a leaked copy of Trump’s income tax return in 2005 that showed he paid $38 million in taxes on more than $150 million in income.The … [Read more...]

Trump’s surprise cuts will only make things worse in a city that already has a housing crisis.New York City residents outside the Brownsville Houses public housing projects. AP Photo/Kathy WillensIn a surprise move, New York City’s public housing authority received a letter from the Trump administration last week informing it that its federal funding will be cut by millions this year, the largest … [Read more...]

There is no evidence the jobs data was manipulated under President Obama.Trump budget director Mick Mulvaney. CREDIT: AP Photo/Manuel Balce CenetaThe first report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to measure unemployment and job creation under President Trump came out on Friday. It showed a healthy economy adding jobs, which continues a long streak.But Trump’s budget director, Mick … [Read more...]

Kansas is reeling from Brownback’s policies. Trump wants to send him to Rome to talk about food.Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback (R) waves to lawmakers during his State of the State speech. CREDIT: AP Photo/Orlin WagnerKansas Gov. Sam Brownback (R) will soon be given a plum United Nations job by President Donald Trump, multiple news outlets in the state reported last week.Neither the governor’s office … [Read more...]

Acosta helped author a decision that went against precedent and fired 23 nurses after they protested.Alexander Acosta in his role as Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division in 2004. CREDIT: AP Photo/Evan VucciNearly two decades ago, 23 nurses in Minneapolis walked off the job to protest what they saw as their employer’s attempt to cut off their health benefits. They never came … [Read more...]

Deporting all undocumented immigrants would have extreme effects on the economy.An immigrant arrested during a targeted enforcement operation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in February. CREDIT: ICEPresident Trump pushed forward on his campaign promise to deport all undocumented immigrants on Tuesday by releasing new guidelines to expand and speed up deportations. The memos from the … [Read more...]

$1.8 billion bid would move chicken chain revenue outside IRS jurisdiction.CREDIT: Flickr/Michael SaechangRihanna’s favorite chicken chain seems to have found a way to dodge the taxman.The Brazilian investment firm behind Burger King is looking to absorb Popeyes in a $1.8 billion acquisition. The deal would bring a windfall for Popeyes shareholders — and drill another hole in America’s leaky … [Read more...]

Rather than fix the problems the economy has, the administration is trying to get the numbers it wants.President Trump arriving at the White House on Monday. CREDIT: AP Photo/Andrew HarnikPresident Trump won the White House talking about the ills of the economy and how he would fix them. But to fix what’s broken, first you need to measure where things stand. So far, it appears that the Trump … [Read more...]

Spain received a warning in May that the Islamic State group was planning an attack in Barcelona but decided it lacked credibility, Catalan regional authorities said Thursday. The daily El … [Read More...]

A company that suffered an explosion at a chemical plant close to Houston has said it “fully expects” more fires - potentially as many as eight - as a result of flooding overwhelming the … [Read More...]

Mosques across the state of Texas are being turned into shelters for the victims of Hurricane Harvey. The Islamic Society of Greater Houston (ISGH), which represents 21 Islamic centres in … [Read More...]

White House

Police in the northern Spanish city of Barcelona say a white van has jumped the sidewalk in the city’s historic Las Ramblas district, injuring several people. Police cordoned off the broad … [Read More...]

A white supremacist who helped organise the "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, has appeared on camera crying as he describes his fear of arrest. Chris Cantwell, a racist … [Read More...]

Supreme Court

New York MagazineFive Years Later, States That Rejected the Medicaid Expansion May Get Their RewardNew York Magazine... that Just Said No will be (relatively speaking) rewarded. We would not … [Read More...]

NewsweekPort of Seattle files US Supreme Court brief opposing travel banKent ReporterThe Port of Seattle has filed an amicus brief with the United States Supreme Court, urging the court to … [Read More...]